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Campus Makers

University of Richmond

w  Two meetings will update the community on plans to expand First Market Stadium, the campus multi-purpose stadium. Jim Miller, director of intercollegiate activities will lead the discussions. The first will take place at 7 p.m. April 1 at Jepson Hall, Room 118 (building 17 on the campus map (see www.richmond.edu/visit/directions/campusmap.pdf). The second will beheld at 7 p.m. April 29 at Weinstein Hall, Brown-Alley Room (building 8 on the campus map). Registration for the sessions is requested. To register or for more information, call 289-8694. For complete information about the stadium project, visit the First Market Stadium Expansion Info Center online at richmondspiders.cstv.com/facilities/stadium-updates.html.

w A one-time Harvard University dropout, now a professor at the university's John F. Kennedy School of Government, will join the first black woman to become a tenured professor at Harvard's law school in the final two programs of the Jepson/WILL Forum on Rhetoric & Reality, both April 2 at the University of Richmond's Jepson Alumni Center. Marshall Ganz, the public policy lecturer who dropped out of Harvard to become a civil rights organizer, will speak on "Leading Social Change: Relationships, Story and Strategy" at noon. Lani Guinier, a law professor and civil rights scholar, will discuss "The Next Vanguard in Civil Rights —Abandoning the Myth of Meritocracy" at 7 p.m.  Seating is limited for the Ganz luncheon, and reservations are required. Contact Shannon Best at 804-287-6522 or sbest@richmond.edu for reservations. Tickets are free but required for the Guinier lecture and can be reserved by calling 804-289-8980.    

w J oseph Wu, Taiwan's chief governmental representative to the United States, will speak at the university April 3 on "Taiwan and the United States: Partners in Security, Prosperity and Democracy." Wu's talk will focus on Taiwan's key role in global high-tech commerce, Chinese culture, Sino-American relations and American policy in Asia. It takes place at Jepson Hall, Room 118, and begins at 4 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. A reception will follow. 

w The men's basketball team will face the faculty of Tuckahoe Middle School  on April 10. The exhibition game will benefit the National Arthritis Foundation (NAF). The event will honor Dymond Carle, a Tuckahoe MS sixth-grader who suffers from juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. NAF representatives will sell tickets at the door to the Tuckahoe MS community for $5 each, and all proceeds go directly to the cause.

w The university will inaugurate Edward L. Ayers as its ninth president April 10-11 during two days of festivities that will include a historical symposium, installation ceremony, environmental awareness activities, campus open-houses, cultural events and musical celebration. Ayers' inauguration will coincide with the university's annual Reunion Weekend April 11-13 so that both local and out-of-town alumni can participate in both events. Other events taking place on campus throughout the inauguration and Reunion Weekend include: campus open houses by the university's schools of arts and sciences, business, continuing studies, law, and leadership studies, and at the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement; University Players performances of "The Meeting"; and art exhibits at the Joel and Lila Harnett Museum of Art, Lora Robins Gallery of Design from Nature, and Joel and Lila Harnett Print Study Center. The Virginia Baptist Historical Society will present an exhibit, "The Richmond Adventure: A Historical Overview of the University of Richmond." Admission to all exhibits is free and open to the public. Tickets to the play are for sale at the Modlin Center Box Office. For more information about the inauguration, call 804-287-1800.

w NASA astronaut and University of Richmond graduate Leland Melvin will present "Reaching for the Stars" at the Robins Center at 2 p.m. April 13. During the multimedia interactive presentation, Melvin will talk about his experiences as an astronaut and his recent space shuttle flight to the International Space Station. A space suit model, Mars rover, astronaut food tray and other items used during space travel will be on display. A brief question-and-answer session will follow, and autographed lithographs of Melvin will be distributed. The event is free and open to the public. Last month, Melvin and six other members of the space shuttle Atlantis crew completed a 13-day, 5.3 million mile mission to expand the size and research capabilities of the International Space Station. Melvin operated the shuttle's robotic arm.

w To commemorate the 220th anniversary of Virginia's ratification of the Constitution, two scholars will debate the issue at 7:30 p.m. April 15 at the university's Weinsetin Hall, Brown-Alley Room. Admission is free and open to the public. Terry Bouton, associate professor of history at the University of Maryland, Baltimore College, will argue that the Constitution compromised the principles early Americans fought for. University of Richmond history and leadership studies professor Mark McGarvie will defend the  onstitution as the document that saved the fledgling democracy. The event is sponsored by the university's history department and the Society of the Cincinnati in the State of Virginia. For more information, call 804-289-8332 or e-mail dgovoruh@richmond.edu.

w The university has been named to the 2008 Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine list of the 50 "Best Values in Private Universities" for the second year in a row. The list ranks private colleges and universities based on outstanding academics, overall cost and amount of financial aid awarded to students. The rankings appear in the April issue of the magazine. Richmond was ranked 22nd on the list of the top 50 private universities, the only school in Virginia to make the private universities list.

w The university has named Nanci Tessier, who has more than 20 years of admission, financial aid and marketing experience, as its first vice president for enrollment management. She officially will join Richmond on July 1. Tessier will be responsible for coordinating the university's admission and financial aid efforts to build on Richmond's momentum in enrolling high achieving undergraduate students from a wide array of backgrounds.

w Stephen Allred, executive associate provost and professor of public law and government at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, has been named the next provost and vice president for academic affairs at the University of Richmond.

w The University Players will present Lorraine Hansberry's Tony Award Winning play "A Raisin in the Sun" April 4-6 and April 11-13 in the Performing Arts Theatre located on the Virginia Union campus at 1500 North Lombardy St. The Friday and Saturday night performances begin at 8 p.m.  The Sunday performances start at 4 p.m.  Tickets are $10 for the general public. For more information, call 804-305-5029.

w Retailer Stein Mart and students and faculty of Bryant & Stratton College will address issues facing prisoners reentering society, community revitalization and cross-cultural awareness by sponsoring a "Shop Night" to benefit "Boaz & Ruth." Boaz & Ruth is a Highland Park-based agency that addresses social issues surrounding prisoner reentry and recidivism, job training and community revitalization. The Shop Night event will be from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. April 6 and will be for Bryant & Stratton College faculty, students and invited guests. Members of the general public interested in supporting Boaz and Ruth through the event may call Bryant & Stratton at 804-734-2444  for more information.